Q I have a 2000 X5 3.0i petrol auto, and am wondering which automatic gearbox it uses. There’s been talk in TBMW about solenoids that need replacing but it’d be useful to know which variants have this troublesome item!

Dave Poulson, email.

A Okay. 3.0d cars up until late 2002 with the original M57 engine use the GM five-speed auto – so does the 3.0i petrol like yours. These boxes have the converter clutch solenoid that needs replacing at 100,000 miles (preferably around 80,000).

For 2003, the X5 3.0d gained the revised M57N engine for the E65 730d and E60 530d cars and with it, an all-new six-speed ZF auto. The 3.0i petrol X5 retained the M54 engine and the GM five-speed until its end in 2005.

As for the V8s, the original 4.4i had a five-speed ZF unit derived from the E38 740i unit. From late 2002, the 4.4 litre M62 engine was replaced by the new Valvetronic N62 engine from the E65 745i plus a new ZF 6-speed box. The 4.6iS used a five-speed ZF box similar to the original 4.4i unit and the 4.8iS from 2003 used the 6-speed ZF.